National Forest Martyrs Day is observed in India every year on September 11 to honor the forest officers, rangers, and frontline staff who lost their lives protecting the nation’s forests, wildlife, and natural ecosystems from illegal poachers, wood-cutting mafias, and hazardous forest fires. Officially instituted by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change in 2013, the date was chosen to commemorate the historic Khejarli Massacre of 1730. On this day, Amrita Devi Bishnoi alongside 362 other members of the Bishnoi community in Rajasthan laid down their lives by hugging sacred Khejri trees to prevent them from being felled by royal soldiers—establishing one of the world’s earliest recorded acts of environmental sacrifice.
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Nurturing Creativity – Keekli Charitable Trust, Shimla
